Undertaken (#Wattys2015) (Star Wars)

Chapter 14 - Force Blow

"You ready, Bost?" Obi-Wan's encouraging voice filled the atmosphere by the boy's house. The clock just struck 5 in the afternoon and they were back at Highhold's, except that they stayed on the ground instead of filling up the tree house. The boy was excited as far as Obi-Wan could read his emotions. Again, the master struggled with sensing his feelings, but decided to ignore his frustration for now.

Highhold wore a blindfold made of thick black material over his dark blue eyes and faced the master. Next to Obi-Wan stood Mace Windu, not personally attending the event of course, but in a form of a shaky blue hologram. He has been active in their chat for an hour now thanks to Obi-Wan. He told Windu all about Bost being 'The Exceptional' and owning a unique blade color, even about his earlier emotion-sensing performance. Bost took part in the conversation at times, though he didn't exactly understand Jedi speech when it came around. Mace Windu seemed OK about Obi-Wan's discoveries, he was concerned about the boy's age, but nevertheless the forgotten history of The Exceptional excited him.

To Bost's relief, the High Council Jedi master was content with his single answer 'adopted' when it came to his parents. Master Windu wasn't all that curious about family history, he briefly bowed when Obi-Wan mentioned how Bost grew up on Alderaan and was captured by Sith, then asked Kenobi to roll the show. Not in this non-serious manner of course, only in Anakin's joky translation of formal babble.

"Close your eyes and focus. Sense the surroundings around you. Feel." Master Windu instructed, "Clear your mind and turn all your gained focus on the droid head."

After the team left Anakin's explosion site, Bost picked up that droid head in order to study it, but it was too damaged to be good for any purpose. Except for Force push practices of course.

"Now, extend your hand and move the object." Came the next command. Bost did as he was told, at least did the hand part of the instruction. But the droid piece just didn't wish to coordinate. He tried again. And again.

"Focus."

He was, he focused just so much, but yet the piece still hasn't moved. Bost sighed defeated, "I can't do it."

Mace's face changed from serious to cold. He exchanged looks with Obi-Wan, "You spoke so highly about this boy, Kenobi. Yet I see no evidence that your claims are real."

"Of-of course they're real." Obi-Wan assured him nervously, "I believe he's what I think he's."

"I need proof." Windu said in his monotone tone he uses at the most, "You understand my points, right, Kenobi?"

"Yes master."

Their gazes fell back on Bost streching out his right hand towards the droid head again. Evidence? He needs evidence? I just met these 'Jedi' last night by accident, I didn't even want to bother them! And now they're expecting me, ME of all people, to move a piece of damaged metal with my mind? Sure the red-sworded men haunted me and my father gave me a shiny sword, big deal. Dammit, move you piece of metal! Stupid Force! Work!

"Bost." Obi-Wan called him kindly.

"I can't do it!" He answered in an agonized tune, "I can't!"

"You're holding back! Your emotions hold you back! Let go of them, Bost! You're afraid, I can sense it! Spill it, ease your feelings!"

"I can't do it!" His breath rate doubled.

"Tell me what you're afraid of!" Obi-Wan shouted.

"I can't!" Bost screamed hopelessly, still focusing on the droid.

"Yes you can," the master reassured him, "you can, and you will!"

"That thing would never move!"

"It will!"

"No!"

He suddenly cursed the moment Alpha spotted him in the woods, cursed the moment Obi-Wan helped on his leg, cursed the moment he'd told him his story, showed him the saber, listened to Anakin's explaining about Jedi. Most of all, he cursed first impressions, he'd screwed this practice up in front of the head of the Jedi Council, his chances of becoming a Jedi are lower than Utapau's holes.

"That thing would move before you know it!" Obi-Wan tried to encourage him, "Let go of your emotions!"

"I'm not here to prove anything!" Still, his hand was raised towards the target, "I cannot move it!"

"Kenobi, I feel a great Force field of energy," Mace Windu suddenly said with a surprised look on his face, "rising."

Tension was rising as well. Obi-Wan could sense active Force too by then, a lot. Both Jedi masters plastered their gazes on Highhold, whose expression grew stronger and stronger each second.

"You don't have to prove anything." Mace said softly, "You can move it, I know it."

Unable to handle the quantity of Force he had in himself, Bost just burst out like a bubble of Force field. Both his hands streched to the sides, pushing away everything around himself. The Force field he had built up escaped and spread everywhere as far as eyes could see, perhaps even affected the entire planet. He was the centre of the field, everything around him got some of the humongous Force blow.

Obi-Wan's body clashed into a tree's trunk and the flowing Force plastered him on it. Anakin, who was leaning against a similar tree to watch the actions, got pushed into wood as well. Bosts's Force blow sent Alpha to the ground and rolled onto the trunk of the tree house. The comlink wasn't blown far actually. Mace Windu could witness it all. The greatest Force push of all time.

The blow lasted for about twenty seconds, before Bost collapsed on the ground and lay uncontious. Obi-Wan regained himself first, holding his head with one hand, getting in a sitting position. Anakin was speechless and barely contious. Alpha limped to the two Jedi. In front of the three stood Mace's shaky blue hologram. It hasn't moved. But it did say the final words;

"He's The Exceptional."